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2001 AMAIProgressive Insurance U. S. Flat Track Championships Series Now for those of you who have never seen the game played before, it works like this: I guess lhe riders lhat I think will be hot and the riders lhat I think will not for the 2001 season, using sophisticated scientific instruments such as their 2000 finishing positions, a dart board and a case of Busch Beer. That's right, Busch, the official beverage of the AMA dirt track crew. But wait, there's more. No matter what I say, the boys are virtually guaranteed to {lip {lop, screw up, step up and step off at some point in the season, rendering my predictions absolutely useless! Isn't that great? I get to look like a moron (well, a big- STORY AND PHOTOS By SCOTT ROUSSEAU H ello again, everyone, and welcome to our show. I'm your host, Scott Rousseau and this is The Guessing Game, our annual foray into the crystal ball where we predict the big winners and the big weenies in the wacky, zany world of the AMA/Progressive Insurance U.S. Flat Track Championships, featuring riders and teams who spend ungodly amounts of cash for very few prizes. ger-than-usual moron) while some lucky guy who I predicted to do no better than fourth or fifth stands tall and looks like a hero, firmly clasping the AMA Grand National Championship trophy in one hand while thumbing his nose at me with the other hand. Thank me? No. Thank you. Blah, blah, blah... Hey, at least I had an excuse. Last year there were two series to worry about, what with the upstart revolution that was the Formula USA/Wrenchead.com National Dirt Track Series. I predicted Chris Carr to win the championship, and he did, in that series. But in the AMA series (the one that I really picked him to win) Ca~r finished third, mostly due to the fact that he skipped rounds of the AMA series to fulfill commitments with the Formula USA series. Carr is now $50,000 richer for it, and I still look dumb. And do you think that the guy would even bother to send me a check for even, say, one fifth of the amount? I still check the mailbox every day. I picked Rich King to do better than fourth, but the new factory rider did, as I predicted he would, suffer while coming to terms with his newfound position in the kingdom of Harley. 01' King cleaned house over there in that Wrenchead deal, too, scoring four wins. Will Davis finished second. I predicted that he'd net third, but he could have won the whole shooting match if he hadn't gotten whacked in the noggin at that vicious church softball game. The guy who came through in the 1. Rider: Will Davis National #: 21 Age: 36 Residence: Goldsboro, North CaroHna Team: Fasthog.com/Moroney's Harley-Davidson Tuner: Mi~e Wheeler Career best result: Second place (1997, 2000) 2000 best finish: First place (Joliet Half Mile, Hutchinson Half Mile, Hagerstown Half Mile, Springfield Mile) 2000 series result: Second place e was the winningest rider on the U.S. Flat Track Championship circuit last season, and I believe that he could have pulled out the championship if not for the head injury that came as the result of the softba 11 thing. Davis just strikes me as one focused individual. You can hear it in his voke. He has spent all season studying his race notes, and he and tuner Mike Wheeler are prepared to give 'em hell in 2001. With five identically prepared XR750s and two more 600s, they certainly have more than enough equipment to get the job done. Plus, Davis can win miles now, something he always new that he could do but had never proved until last season. He still hates Peoria, but that's the only joint on the schedule where Davis could easily lose points to some of the competition. Anywhere else, and he's in the game to win. 2. Rider: Chris Carr National #: 4 Age: 33 Residence: Fleetwood, Pennsylvania Team: Harley-Davidson of Sacramento Tuner: Kenny Tolbert Career best reSUlt: AMA Grand National Champion (1992, 1999) 2000 best finish: First place (Topeka Short Track, Lima Half Mile, Peoria TT) 2000 result: Third place nce again, preparation is the key, and Carr and Tolbert are prepared like no other. Carr sped to back-to-back Wins at Topeka and Lima last season. He is the consummate all-around rider, effective everywhere he goes. And will he ever be beaten at Peoria? Alas, last season, Carr chose to go for the big dough that SFX Motor Sports was throwing around, and it proved to be a lucrative move for him, no regrets. With the Wrenchead.com deal by the wayside and a decision to make the U.S. Flat Track Championships his primary focus, there's no doubt that he will be strong. As long as he doesn't put himself in the hole by falling off his road-race ride at Daytona, Carr will be right in the thick of the hunt, just as he has been for the past 15 years. H 16 FEBRUARY 28,2001 • cue I O e n e...., s 4. 3. Rider: Rich King National #: 80 Age: 37 Residence: Dysart, Iowa Team: Harley-Davidson Tuner: Bill Werner Career best result: Second place (1995, 1999) 2000 best finish: First place (Vemon Half Mile) 2000 result: Fourth place got burned on this one last year, mainly because I didn't think that it would take as long as it did for King to start winning. He did win a lot, just not on the AMA circuit. Still, I figure. that I'll probably come out slightly singed again by picking him third. There is little doubt in my mind that he has the best guy spinning wrenches - 13 titles carry some decent cred - but ellen Bill Werner and Scott Parker didn't start winning championships together right away. Trouble is, at 37 years old, King doesn't have the luxury of a lot of years left to get the job done. If he does, though, then I'm betting it will be because he lived up to his Mr. Consistency nickname once again. Don't look for an incredible string of wi:ns, just a lot of visits to the box. I Rider: Joe Kopp National#: 1 Age: 31 Residence: Mica, Washington Team: Corbin Racing/Harley-Davidson of Missouri Tuner: Dave Burks/Dennis Town Career best result: AMA Grand National Champion (2000) 2000 best finish: First place (Sedalia Half Mile) 2000 result: AMA Grand National Champion ow, some of you will probably think I'm crazy to pick our reigning Grand National Champion this far down the list (I'm wondering that myself). But what l see happening over in th.is camp leaves questions in my mind as to the state of preparedness that this team can muster. Sure, th.e Corbin Electric/Samson team of the Hayden boys is a separate entity, but with the talented Carl Patrick building all the motors for both teams as well as tuning for the Corbin/Samson division, something has got to give. This mammoth program will either look like a powerhouse or an outhouse, and Kopp may finish on top again or further down the order than I picked him. Either way, one win will not get it done in 2001. N